Marketing with Content: Be a Reader and Not a Seller

Marketing with Content: Be a Reader and Not a Seller

One of the mistakes I see with many blogs and other forms of content marketing is that the writers will insert advertisements into their blogs or other content. In some cases, the blog will be addressing a specific issue and a way to solve it with the manufacturer’s product. Then lo and behold, there’s an image of the product, hyperlinked so that the visitor can jump right to the page where they can make an online purchase.

Now, to the manufacturer, this makes perfect sense. After all, the entire reason for writing a blog, as they see it, is to promote their company and their products. So why not just show the product and make it very easy to buy it? It’s nothing more than having a call to action, which is something every blog/content marketing placement should have, isn’t it?

When it comes to any form of content marketing, placing an advertisement in the content is a very big no-no. Put yourself in the reader’s position. The reader is looking for and reading something that they believe may help them in some way, and then all of a sudden an advertisement shows up.

Instead of wanting to select the product, the reader is likely to think, “These people are just trying to sell me something. Right now, I’m trying to learn something.” And before you know it, they are off and gone.

Now let’s take out the advertisements and present only high-quality, credible, educational content that readers can learn from. They read your quality content, and when they step back they say, “I learned something from these people. These people helped me and I like this company.”

You now have a fan, and having a fan is the first step in making a sale. This is yet another example of how words – not advertisements – can lead to sales.

The essence of this strategy is the belief that if we, as businesses, deliver consistent, ongoing valuable information to buyers, they ultimately reward us with their business and loyalty.”

—Joe Pulizzi, author of “Epic Content Marketing”

Robert “Buzz” Kravitz is president of AlturaSolutions, which works extensively with B2B industries such as the professional cleaning, foodservice, hotel, hospitality, and Green-related manufacturers and organizations. Contact him at www.alturasolutions.com